Audio signal editing apparatus and control method therefor

An audio signal editing apparatus capable of editing audio signals of a set of channels selected from among a plurality n of channels, said n channels being divided into a plurality of layers, each of the layers consisting of a predetermined number m (where m<n) of channels, said audio signal editing apparatus comprising:

• a display device capable of displaying a display screen for use of editing a selected one of said layers:
• an operator device operable to perform editing operation on audio signals of the m channels, belonging to the selected one of said layers, on a channel-by-channel basis;
• and
• a processor coupled with said display device and operator device, said processor adapted to:
• select any one of the plurality of layers;
• and
• perform editing, interlocked with the editing operation performed via said operator device, on an audio signal of a p-th channel belonging to another layer which is previously defined to constitute a pair with a k-th channel belonging to the selected layer.

A method of editing audio signals of a set of channels selected from among a plurality n of channels, said method comprising:

• selecting one of first and second combining modes;
• determining a set of channels including k-th and (k+1)th channels (where 1≦k and k+1≦n) when said first combining mode is selected, but determining a set of channels including k-th and (k+m)th channels (where 1≦k and k+m≦n, and m is a predetermined number greater than 2 but smaller than n) when said second combining mode is selected;
• and
• performing editing on audio signals of the determined set of channels in accordance with editing parameters, said editing parameters being interlocked between the channels of the determined set of channels.

A method for editing audio signals of a set of channels selected from among a plurality n of channels, said n channels being divided into a plurality of layers, each of the layers consisting of a predetermined number m (where m<n) of channels, said method comprising:

• selecting any one of the plurality of layers;
• allowing editing operation to be performed on audio signals of the m channels, belonging to the selected layer, on a channel-by-channel basis, using operator device;
• and
• performing editing, interlocked with the editing operation performed via said operator device, on an audio signal of a p-th channel belonging to another layer that is previously defined to constitute a pair with a k-th channel belonging to the selected layer.